Oct. 23, 2017

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10 OCT. 23, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED
UNDER THE DOME
With the graduation of wings V.J. Beachem
and Steve Vasturia, the Fighting Irish will need
their upperclassmen to develop and fill the void
in 2017-18. Among those players is junior guard
Rex Pflueger.
During the first two-thirds of the 2016-17 sea-
son, Pflueger played the sixth man role for head
coach Mike Brey — but he found himself in the
starting lineup in 11 of the team's final 12 games.
For the season, he averaged 4.7 points and 2.7
rebounds in 21.4 minutes per contest.
Pflueger spent time overseas this summer with
the East Coast All-Stars, which is a United States
travel team comprised of college players. During
the trip to Madrid, Spain, the team matched up
against the national squads for multiple coun-
tries, including Venezuela, Mexico and Japan.
Fifth-year big man Austin Torres was also part of
the squad.
BGI: How was your overseas trip and what did
you take away from it?
Pflueger: "It was an awesome experience to go
over there and play against some professionals. It
was my first time playing outside the country, so
it was awesome to get that under my belt.
"Just playing underneath legendary coaches in
Larry Brown … that in itself is
an amazing opportunity."
BGI: What was the big take-
away from that experience in
regards to being able to grow
your game to help the Irish as
a junior?
Pflueger: "I learned that I
have the ability to do every-
thing that I believe I can. I
believe I can score at a major
level, I believe I can defend at
a major level, and I know I can
play at a high level.
"Playing there really built my
confidence. … My confidence
is up and I'm ready to show it."
BGI: What was the biggest difference you no-
ticed playing against professionals?
Pflueger: "They're really smart, especially the
European players. They play really well together.
… It's all about maturity.
"When you're playing against those players
… you're going to learn a little bit every single
game."
BGI: What was the feeling
representing your country over-
seas in that environment?
Pflueger: "It 's always an
honor to wear the USA, es-
pecially for my first time. Just
wearing it there and promoting
our country and acting like civi-
lized individuals.
"People have some dark light
on Americans right now, but I
believe going over there and
wearing that USA hopefully
made our country proud."
BGI: You hit a game-winning
shot while in Spain — what was
the feeling like seeing that shot
go in?
Pflueger: "It was awesome because of how
close we became as a team so fast. All of our
teammates were from different colleges and dif-
ferent parts of the U.S., and when I hit that shot
I didn't expect them to run up and jump on me.
"The feeling of them showing their excitement
for me was probably the best part of that shot."
— Corey Bodden
Five Questions With … MEN'S BASKETBALL JUNIOR GUARD REX PFLUEGER
USC Remains The Measuring Stick By Lou Somogyi
In most any year, this question would be viewed as a joke. How can one
even bring up the football traditions/history/legacies of USC and North
Carolina State in the same sentence? There is no
comparison.
Yet I understand why this is an intriguing inquiry.
USC has been teetering on the brink this year, eventu-
ally losing at Washington State, and injuries have piled
up, especially along both lines. Furthermore, whereas
the Fighting Irish have a bye Oct. 14 to decompress,
USC has to play 12 straight games with no bye.
Meanwhile, the Wolfpack already has won at Flor-
ida State, has the best defensive line the Irish will face
this year, has a bye the week before the Notre Dame
game and can catch Brian Kelly's team in a letdown
the week after facing the archrival.
But take it from someone who has seen nearly 50
years worth of this rivalry: USC is still plenty loaded
with talent, more so than NC State ever will be. They
overcame a rough 1-3 start last year to finish No. 3
in the country, and the 42-24 win this year against
Stanford saw them rack up 623 yards of total offense.
Notre Dame hasn't defeated a ranked USC team since
1995, and the Trojans will be gunning for their first
back-to-back wins versus the Irish since 2008-09.
NC State will be an imposing challenge from a
different perspective, but USC remains the alpha fig-
ure and eternal standard/nemesis on Notre Dame's
schedule.
NC State Will Tell Us More About Irish By Bryan Driskell
There are always bragging rights on the line when Notre Dame and USC
square off. If we are having a big picture debate, I would say that beating the
Trojans is better for recruiting, national perception
with recruits and — most likely, due to the national
rankings — for Notre Dame's College Football Playoff
résumé.
So why am I going with North Carolina State? It's
simple: the Wolfpack is going to tell us a lot more
about what kind of team Notre Dame is in 2017. USC
is athletic, but its lines weren't that good before inju-
ries ravaged its big men.
NC State, on the other hand, has the best combina-
tion of offensive and defensive linemen left on Notre
Dame's schedule.
The Irish have been doing some mighty impressive
things on the football field this season, rushing for
more than 300 yards in three of their first five games
and playing much improved defense. But the loss to
Georgia still stings, in particular because Notre Dame
was not the more physical team that day.
What kind of growth can Notre Dame show in re-
gards to going toe-to-toe and even beating a team
built on physicality? Can the Irish blockers be better
against NC State standout end Bradley Chubb and
the Wolfpack defenders than they were against the
Georgia big men?
If they can, it means the Irish are playing Notre
Dame football, and doing it in impressive fashion.
Point ✦ Counterpoint:
WHICH HOME GAME THIS MONTH IS THE GREATER CHALLENGE, USC OR NC STATE?
Defensive end Bradley Chubb (above) and
NC State may not have the name appeal of
quarterback Sam Darnold and USC, but they
may provide the Irish with a tougher game.
PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN
Pflueger averaged 4.7 points and
2.7 rebounds in 21.4 minutes per
game last season.
PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME MEDIA RELATIONS